What do you LIKE about your least favorite Sonic characters?

[Dr. Mechano]

It's easy to prattle on all day about the characters we love the most; After all, they're our top priority in the series and fanbase at large, and we spend more time thinking about them than the characters we're not as fond of. So I'm offering a challenge!

Pick some of your least favorite Sonic characters. Whether they're your least favorite because you outright dislike them, or you do like them but simply happen to like everyone else more than them, I'm sure everyone's ranking of Sonic characters has a bottom tier. Ponder these lowest-ranked characters in your personal lists, and tell us something nice about them!

That's right, what do you like about your least-liked character(s)? I think it'll be interesting to see what people have to say here.

OBNOXIOUS BOLD WARNING: THIS IS NOT A CHARACTER-BASHING TOPIC. IF YOU CANNOT THINK OF ANYTHING POSITIVE TO SAY IN YOUR POST, YOU PROBABLY SHOULDN'T BE POSTING HERE.

Got it? Good.

So, I'll start!

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So let's kick things off with Shadow the Hedgehog. Most of you know I'm one of Shadow's more outspoken critics, but I'm gonna admit the guy has some cool points.

First, I think his role in Sonic Adventure 2 was actually pretty likable. Particularly when he reforms at the end, Shadow comes across as a very earnest and very believable good guy, and his remorse for buying into Gerald's revenge plot is evident. Some might say Shadow's better when he's morally ambiguous, but the end of SA2 is one of my favorite Shadow moments, highlighting what a cool outright hero he can be.

Depending on the game, I like that Shadow is sometimes written as a well-spoken, polite character. His interaction with Eggman in 2K6 and the Rivals games highlights this- He always addresses "The Doctor" with a sort of respect, and has a gentlemanly quality about his dialogue in these games at least.

And I actually enjoy Shadow's moodiness when it's played for comedy. Mario and Sonic has one of my favorite examples, with Shadow the sore loser. "I let you win."

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Rouge the Bat is another character who I've always been critical of, but she's not without her merits.

Sonic Adventure 2 was Rouge at her best, and portrayed a flawed but likable character. She was greedy and sneaky, but toward the game's final act displayed a softer side of her personality. The scene after the Knuckles fight- and later the game's ending- showed that Rouge was capable of some real emotional range.

I also really liked her musical motifs in SA2, for both her theme song and level music. It's quite jazzy, and I totally can dig that.

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E-123 Omega is probably at the bottom of the barrel for me, but even I can find a few things to like about the raging robot. ...a few.

Omega can be kinda funny sometimes, and his fits of robo-rage have emitted a chuckle or two from me in Heroes and Chronicles.

I think that's all I can come up with for him, but it's something.

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Mephiles is a villain who never impressed me, and while I find him a bit overrated, I can see why people like him.

Whether this was intentional or not is up for debate, but the guy's hamminess is pretty hilarious at times. Dan Green yelling at the top of his lungs and laughing like a madman makes him fun to watch, and basically turns the whole Sonic death scene into what I presume to be unintentional comedy.

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Charmy grates on my nerves most of the time, but he's not without his moments.

His interaction with the rest of the Chaotix is often a good source of comic relief, and he often plays a vital role in the setup of some great dialogue between the three. I suppose it's less about the character himself, but Vector and Espio wouldn't quite be the same without that hyperactive kid around to balance the mood.

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So those are a few of my least-liked characters, and some things I enjoy about them.

Your turn, SSMB! Think positive!

[Your Vest Friend]

Well, it's not hard for me to come up with some positives, because when it comes to game characters, the most I hate a character for is being...well, just uninteresting to me.

Since Blaze and the Rogues fit under that category, I'll look at them;

Blaze; I almost have the same deal with Blaze as you have with Charmy. It's not so much about her when it comes to the aspect I like, but the way she interacts with other characters is usually something I look forward to since it comes off as pretty sweet (namely in regards to Silver, Marine and Cream).

The Babylon Rogues; I'll admit, I think these guys are just a victim of circumstance. They have an interesting dynamic between the three of them that teeter totters between madcap professionals and a dysfunctional family, especially with Jet and Wave being confrontational and feisty with each other as Storm loiters at the back. Unfortunately, they just didn't grip my imagination as much as a different group with a similarly screwball dynamic...

[Big Boss (legendsneverdie)]

Gerald Robotnik was pretty well acted in the two games he appeared in.

Nack had a decent design.

E-102 Gamma had a decent storyline in his debut game.

Edited December 8, 2011 by Wearied Snowflakes

[azoo]

Challenge accepted!

Silver looks cool when he's acting all crazy with his mind powers like he did in the battle in Generations. Also, not exactly him, but Pete Capella's interpretation of his personality (when he acts as him live) is hilarious.

Amy Rose can be a cute character when she isn't acting ultra-crazy. I also really liked her characterization in Sonic Adventure, she was really sweet and had more dimension to her personality. She shopped, she went to parks, she daydreamt, she helped those in need; she had more on her mind than Sonic around-the-clock, and that made her very likable. If only she just had more to her in every game (or any media for that matter) since.

Omega was the main reason I decided to continue playing Sonic Chronicles as long as I did (and also why I kept my Sonic Universe subscription as long as I have), because in those two things he's written to be very funny and amusing to watch at times.

Charmy sets up a great dynamic between himself, Espio and Vector, helping create the perfect trio of mischief: the bighead, the goofball, and the straight man. The Babylon Rogues kinda copy that, but they don't really do it that well either. On that note..

The Babylon Rogues... I'm having a hard time pinpointing anything positive about these guys. I guess I like seeing Jet get stomped in the ground by Sonic? I guess it's good that he at least reminds me of a rip off of Gary Oak, and Gary is awesome so

I'm not gonna list the likes of Black Doom and Mephiles, and Solaris.. because really, there is nothing good to say about them. At all.

Edited December 8, 2011 by Azublitzen

[Dr. Crusher]

A good thread to make Mr. Mechano. It does feel nice to say something positive about those you're not so fond of... and in my case it gives me a chance to show that I don't treat certain characters and demons solely with blind hatred.

For the record, these are the lowest of the low in my book. As in, others (Amy, Biolizard, Black Doom, Master Core: ABIS, Dark Gaia, Chip, etc) aren't mentioned because they have enough details for me to genuinely like them somewhat, or being indifferent to as opposed to outright dislike (Elise, Silver)... or in the case of Iblis, simply having nothing to say about him. But anyways:

The Tails Doll does have a suitable creepy vibe to him, albeit the not kind everyone makes him out to be. The little touches like falling motionless on the ground when losing were also slightly eerie. If they could use him for an optional battle in an old Robotnik fortress...

I agree with Mechano about Shadow's somewhat gentleman-like qualities. Most characters like him in other media tend to be ultra-violent or just plain jerkish, so having one that's even half-polite is a nice surprise. And while I was never a major fan of him to begin with, I can agree with everyone else that he was an intelligent character in SA2.

I did like some aspects of Neo Metal Sonic's design. The black colours/expanded spikes/limbed joints worked really well. Really, had it not been the cape and elf shoes, I'd have no problems with him design-wise at all. Likewise, being Metal Sonic is the only complaint I have against Metal Madness/Overlord - he's actually awesome otherwise.

Nega happens to have a villain trait I approve of - that is, a guy that looks like an everyday ham and yet turns out to be a calm and intelligent individual.

I like the design concept of Mephiles. That is, the black/crystal combo that can take other forms. And I'll admit Dan Green's voice is always fun to listen to. If nothing else, he has one of the best laughs ever.

I actually like the designs of Solaris. Light Is Not Good is a favourite villain trope of mine, so having an angelic-looking baddie was sort of neat. It's a shame most of the game focused more on the seperate Iblis and Mephiles...

Metal Sonic 3.0... reminds me of G-Merl.

I appreciated that the Ifrit wasn't just an Iblis remake. He actually had his own fire-themed appearance and moves.

Caliburn's got a cool voice.

I guess it's good that he at least reminds me of a rip off of Gary Oak, and Gary is awesome so

Edited December 8, 2011 by Dr. Crusher

[Tara]

This is hard for me because there's really no character I can think of off the top of my head that is absolutely terrible to me. I like them all to at least a small extent, but let me try my best.

Rouge - Okay, of all the characters, Rouge is perhaps the most blatant display of attempting to rake in some extra income by exploiting hormonally-imbalanced fourteen-year-old boys and their perverted, sex-driven imaginations and relentless dedication to sucking every miniscule ounce of innocence from all my beloved childhood heroes... HOWEVER, her sassy, drama queen personality was just a little short of charming in Sonic Adventure 2. I feel that her appearances that followed sort of drained that from her and made her act a tad... rationally? Perhaps that's the wrong word. It's not the same, though. In addition, she has one of my favorite theme songs from SA2.

Big - I don't think I even need to explain myself here as I'm sure that most of you can probably do so for me. He's just not a good character and I'm surprised to see that no one above me has listed him yet. However... he is one of those "so bad he's funny" sort of characters and never fails to make me laugh when I sit down to play SA1 or Heroes and really contemplate to myself, "I'm really playing as this guy. Someone actually thought he would be a good addition to the series." I love him for the laughter he brings me.

Charmy - You ever have this little kid that follows you everywhere and makes really bad jokes that would make even a preschooler facepalm? Or perhaps you're a writer and have looked back at works you've written as a kid and thought to yourself, "How could have I ever thought this was a good idea?" That's what makes up 75% of Charmy's dialogue. Most of the time it just gives me a headache, however there are moments where he really does make me laugh. Like with Big, not so much because he's so funny, but because he's not so funny. The best example being the fight with Metal Madness where he calls him an "incomplete freak."

Shadow - Okay, I don't hate Shadow at all. He was a good character in SA2, but from Heroes onward, the poor guy suffered from poor writing and over-milking. His presence in the Sonic universe has overstayed its welcome, in my opinion. I would have preferred it if he remained as a character who you don't see that often but it's always nice when you do as opposed to OMG GOTTA APPEASE THE FANGIRLS BRING BACK SHADOW THROUGH ANY SILLY PLOT DEVICE YOU CAN. Otherwise, he's a cool character and a perfect contrast to Sonic.

Maria Robotnik - Again, not a bad character. In SA2, her cutscenes never failed to leave me in tears. It's in Shadow the Hedgehog where she starts to be sort of whiny-sounding and just overall not appealing. Still, though, a cute character with a tragic backstory.

Sharah/Merlina - They're the same characters. Really. I wouldn't dislike either one if they weren't technically the exact same characters but with different names, voices, and appearances. But they are good characters aside from that fact. They generally have good motives and have interesting stories.

Caliburn - Oh my god is he annoying... but come on. He's a talking sword. How cool is that?!

At the beginning of this post, I said this would be hard for me and then I proceeded to effortlessly listing all my least favorite characters, why I hate them, and what qualities sort of redeem them. I suppose this means that I probably have more to say about the characters I tend to dislike than I do about the characters I enjoy seeing. I'm not quite sure what to make of that.

[batson]

This is gonna be pretty tough. I dont hate any character in the series, but the ones i simply dont like are mostly characters im so indifferent towards that i haven't really given them much thought at all... Oh well, here goes:

Marine: She's kinda cute. Also, it's nice to know that Blaze has someone to socialize with back in her own dimension.

Wave: Her design is kinda interesting. And any character that tends to in any way recognize the existence of Tails is welcome.

Storm: Oh boy, this guy just might be my least favorite character of them all... but at least the way Wave tends to diss him kan be pretty funny.

Chip: The fact that the guy is actually a god is undeniably fascinating.

Eggman Nega: His nutty personality is enjoyable, and i like how some details in his clothing brings to mind Eggman's classic design.

Edited December 8, 2011 by batson

[DarkLight]

I'm not really someone who has a lot of most disliked characters, but if there's one character I've tried to get myself to like, it has to be Amy.

It's been no secret that some people on this forum, including myself, have expressed dislike for how her crush on Sonic can come off as annoying and damaging for her character, but she does have some good features that I feel do get overlooked sometimes.

She can be considerate, brave, and loyal to her friends in the following games:

1. SA1: She spends the whole game protecting a bird despite not really knowing who it is or what Eggman wants with it. She's the one who convinces Gamma to betray Eggman and defends him from a finishing blow from Sonic because she considers Gamma a friend and it's her way of showing gratitude.

2. SA2: This is more of a mixed bag. Throughout most of the game, she was really a useless tag-along after Prison Island (though it's still perplexing as to how she got on the island and how any GUN drones didn't notice her) and there's the scene in which tries to blackmail Sonic into marrying her if he lets her get him out of his cell. But of course her one (and only) moment in this game was helping Shadow's remember his real promise to Maria. So unlike SA1 in which she had a relevant role throughout the game, SA2 she was just a pointless shoe-horn up until the Last Story.

3.06': Yes, I do recall her doing something in this game. She helps out Silver despite not really knowing who he's looking for. But when she does and sees Silver almost finishes off Sonic, she gets in the way, allowing Sonic to escape. So her role in this game was kind of simular to her SA1 portrayal but the writing for 06's does kind of screw over it a bit at this point when she convinces Silver that Sonic would never bring harm to anything or anyone (intentionally.)

"If I had to choose between the world and Sonic, I would choose Sonic."

I don't know, I understood that line was supposed to be meaningful and convincing for Silver, but it could've been a bit more well-thought out (then again, the whole script could've too.)

Another character I always felt is justifiably hated but still something redeemable is Elise.

Yeah, she was a bit selfish near the end of the game ("I don care what happens to the world!") but like Amy, I blame the script. Granted I don't have as much good things to say about her as Amy (mostly due to being in one game of course.)

1. Very considerate and caring about her people and country even if it means turning herself in so Eggman won't harm them.

2. She tended to Sonic's arm when she spotted a wound on it despite him brushing it off as "nothing."

3. The writer's attempt to make her tradgeic character. As bland as I thought Elise was, there were times at which I did feel bad for her. She's an only child, had to grow up without her parents and is a sole princess of an entire country. I admit, that is kind of rough for someone as young as her and it works a lot better than what they did with Chris in Sonic X. At least he still had parents and friends and wasn't a figure of government, Elise, to all we knew, had nobody to really guide her about how to govern or to rule her country and Sonic was pretty much the first actual friend she had so no wonder he meant so much to her. I'm probably looking too much into it, but I do think the writers were trying to make her a more believable tradgeic human character than Sonic X did with Chris, but like everything else, the script and characterization didn't really help.

Edited December 8, 2011 by DarkLightDragon

[NiGHTS]

Silver: When I first saw him, I was like seriously? There just pooping out random hedgehogs just to get money. After playing alittle bit of the Sonic Rivals 1-2 series and Generations. I did like his powers, kind of reminds me, if mewtwo fused with sonic or something..

Big: Not a big fan of a dumb cat. His gameplay in adventure was useless to me. But hes a kind cat, cute together with his frog....hard to hate that!

Princess Elise: She did not belong in a sonic game, otherwise I would actually like her. I have to admit, shes cute to look at. A very nice girl....but my god, what ruined her was just her interaction with Sonic... (kiss duh) turned me off and just well....she belonged in another series i would be liking her. XD

[Diogenes]

Hm, let's see...

Shadow: Well, I like that, deep in the midst of genre roulette, they still had one character that played like Sonic. And I did like his story in SA2, with him playing Eggman from the start and it turning out that he had been manipulated into doing it by Gerald.

Cream: Cheese. Does that count, to name another character? Does he even count as a character? He's basically an accessory...

Silver: Uh, I guess...I guess telekinesis is a pretty cool power, but I wish it wasn't wasted on-sorry, shutting up.

Black Doom: Terrible almost in a parodic way. Not likely intentionally, but still.

Mephiles: ...

...

...i got nothin'

[Chooch]

Positive points about characters I dislike? Let's see.

Metal Sonic has always had a great design and his portrayal in the OVA is absolutely fantastic as far as I'm concerned. I only wish his game counterpart was that interesting.

E-123 Omega was rather amusing in Sonic Chronicles and I liked the showcase of his destructive power in that game. Chronicles more or less proved that any character can be endearing if you have the right person behind the writing of them.

Wave has a cool design I guess? That's.. about it, really.

Edited December 8, 2011 by Chooch Kringle

[Bria]

Black Doom: Really thought he was an extremely random villain along with the entire game he's entitled to. However, I did think those odd sun-design necklaces that dangled from his neck looked rather cool--and hell, he sounds like Dr. Claw.

[Kuzu]

Hmm, I guess the characters I have to find myself trying to like are: Silver, Big, and Cream

Silver: His psychokinesis is pretty cool and it is a unique ability in a series where Speed, Strength and Flight are the primary abilities.

His story in 06 had interesting potential with having to deal with a decision of killing a person and being subsequently called out on it.

Big: He's pretty much the Anti-Sonic character he's the opposite to every other character that tries to be cool, or have all of these flashy moves. He's just a lazy guy who wants to live his life. Plus his design is the most unique among the cast.

Cream: Uh......She's cute?.....and voiced C. Viper....that's all I got.

[Rusty Spy]

Rouge: She had a really great dynamic with pretty much every character she interacted with in SA2. She felt like a villain-wannabe to Eggman and Shadow; pretty much a step behind whatever they were doing and overall having that newbie feel to her. But at the same time, her whole secret agent thing kinda made it feel like she was obfuscating stupidity, and it felt very real. She showed herself as incredibly competent whenever she wasn't trying to pull a wool over the Doc and Shadow's eyes, and her confrontations with Shadow and Knuckles just cemented the fact that underneath everything, she can be a real bitch.

But AFTER that, once all this character development had been over with, her character became very shallow very fast. And by herself, Rouge is a very shallow character, it's her relationship with other characters that really gives her some flavor, and this is demonstrated best in her relationship with Omega and Shadow once they team up and have this rogue anti-hero team going on. Her role as the calm calculating brains to Omega and Shadow's impulsive gun-hoe natures was pulled off really well, and now, she just isn't complete without those two.

Silver: I like the dynamic they tried to pull in 06 with Silver as having a strong sense of justice but was too naive which got him into trouble too often, which leads him to being very adorkable which I find to be very endearing. He showed genuine weakness, a kid who wanted to be a hero but was too young and inexperienced to do well. Also, he was awesome in Generations.

Cream: .... I really like..... Cheese.

[Solkia]

Rouge: Um... Her SA2 theme song is... catchy?

Amy: Fun is Sonic the Fighters.

[Soniman]

Wow so much Cream hate (though im neutral towards her so whatever).

Black Doom: The voice makes me lol

[Mangoaxe5]

Amy: I think that her (moden)design is cute.

[SenEDDtor Missile]

Silver: I like the dynamic they tried to pull in 06 with Silver as having a strong sense of justice but was too naive which got him into trouble too often, which leads him to being very adorkable which I find to be very endearing. He showed genuine weakness, a kid who wanted to be a hero but was too young and inexperienced to do well. Also, he was awesome in Generations.

Didn't know where else to put this, but does anyone else besides me think Silver seems to fit this song really well?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7SMpi0yefeI

[The Weeb with No Name]

with him playing Eggman from the start...

Kinda hard to "play" somebody who is 100% behind what you're out to do. From where do you see this subversion?

I don't like Vector all that much. Conceptually he's ok, but damn is his voice irritating. I guess I like what Egoraptor did with him in that chaotix parody.

[Diogenes]

Kinda hard to "play" somebody who is 100% behind what you're out to do. From where do you see this subversion?

Eggman was led to believe that Shadow was working for him, and that by collecting the emeralds he'd be able to use the Eclipse Cannon to intimidate the world into surrendering to him (or to blast any country that failed to do so into dust). But Shadow's mission was to manipulate whoever released him into activating Gerald's revenge program.

[Winston]

Big, he's purple and has a retarded voice. That's all I like about him.

[Emmett L. Brown]

I liked that Sonic the Werehog reminded me of Ristar. Because I love Ristar. Sometimes during his platforming sections I would pretend I was really controlling Ristar in a furry costume, and I'd feel so much better about it. I guess I'll admit that the way he trashed the Egg Dragoon was pretty dang awesome, too.

I know it's technically not a different character from Sonic, but the Werehog is the exact opposite of the Sonic I love to play in every respect, so that's different enough for me.

...I just painted myself into a corner where I must acknowledge the Sonic in Sonic Labyrinth as an alternate character, didn't I?

[Dantemustdie00]

What I like about Big, is the fact that he is Stupid.

SOMEONE of the Sonic cast has to fill the amazingly slow and stupid role.

[Dr. Crusher]

What I like about Big, is the fact that he is Stupid.

SOMEONE of the Sonic cast has to fill the amazingly slow and stupid role.

I dunno... I can't help but find the dumbass cliche to be a rather unfair role for any character.

[Winston]

I dunno... I can't help but find the dumbass cliche to be a rather unfair role for any character.

He makes lesser mascots look good.